Marijuana Blog

My mother works in a hospital as a security officer. She's a tough lady, having to oversee things such as patient admittance, problematic psychiatric patients, and autopsies. Needless to say, she's definitely seen some crazy stuff at her stint in this hospital. But it's a job and my mom is a tough lady so she handles the challenges like no other.

One time, she told me a story about a woman that was very overweight, to the point where she was brought to the hospital for fear of severe health issues. The nurses in the hospital noticed a bad skin rash on the woman while they were giving her a sponge bath and upon further inspection, noticed that a single Oreo cookie had lodged itself in the woman's skin and had begun to cause the rash to flare. It's kind of a gross story but you'll understand this somewhat awkward introduction in a second.

Police officers pulled over Christopher Mitchell, 42, and Keithian Robers, 38, early in June for not wearing seat belts in their vehicle. When the cops asked why the two weren't wearing the belts, Mitchell stated that he was too big for the seatbelt, being a very robust man. But the men apparently didn't appear to confident in themselves and their nervous behavior caused the cops to summon a K-9 unit to check for drugs in the car.

The dog alerted the cops to the presence of narcotics in the car and the officers searched the men and the vehicle. When they searched Mitchell, they found more than they bargained for. The man had stashed not only 23 grams of marijuana in his stomach folds but also uncovered a handgun, $7000 cash, and a baggie of cocaine as well. Roberts was charged with possession in addition to Mitchell getting a ticket for not wearing his seatbelt. The report didn't state whether the weed was bagged or not.

I have been a fan of Melissa Etheridge for a long time now. I’m not referring to her music, which is good. I’m referring to her as a person. Melissa Etheridge has been a long time supporter of marijuana reform, way before it was fashionable to do so. She is a cancer survivor, and frequently attests to marijuana’s medical value and how it helped her battle cancer. So I was very happy when I heard that Melissa is starting a line of cannabis infused wines. I’m not a fan of wine, but if you are, I strongly encourage you to buy her products and support someone who supports you. Per Marijuana.Com:

Etheridge wants to bring cannabis-infused wines and other products to states like California, New Hampshire and the other 21 states with medical cannabis laws. She explained in her Bloomberg interview that she wants to present cannabis in a non-threatening manner.

“I really look forward to bringing this to the world in a not scary way.” Etheridge said. “Not a drug outlaw way. It’s not that anymore. This is an American business that really needs a lot of help.”

Below is video footage of Melissa talking about medical marijuana and her industry aspirations:

Ok before we get in to it, I want you to think of one thing that you don't indulge in that others around you do. Whether this is eating meat, smoking cigarettes, styling your hair a certain way. Just think of something in normal society that you see that you don't agree with. Now, imagine making a huge to do about it with the police. Say that you see someone with a mohawk and you're so offended by said mohawk that you call the cops and complain about your rights being violated because you don't want to see mohawks, nor do you sport one. This scenario seems pretty bullshit right?

In Washington, this exact scenario is happening but with cannabis smoking. While cigarette smokers (notice how I'm using cigarettes here and not alcohol... NOTICE IT) get to puff away outside of restaurants, on bar patios, front porches, outside of schools, etc, cannabis users aren't allowed to smoke in any public place. Seeing that the cannabis laws are still somewhat new, it seems like keeping pot smoking on the down low for a bit might be in the best interest of the community, just to see how things go. But still, tobacco users are allowed to smoke where ever and whenever they want pretty much, even though the issues associated with Big T are far more than those associated with cannabis.

Recently, a woman who wishes to remain anonymous (probably because she knows her argument is invalid), told KATU-2 On Your Side, that since I-502 passed, she feels that her rights as a non cannabis user are being violated because she can smell weed being smoked in her neighbors yard. "This is something that needs to be talked about, people's rights are being violated by the people who have been given the right to smoke pot," she said. So this brilliant woman took it upon herself to then blast her opinion over social networks, as most people who don't get enough attention in real life do. "I just have to say that it really sucks that I have such a nice backyard that I cannot fully enjoy because when their neighbors start smoking their "legal" pot, it always ends up in my yard. It stinks so bad. I am not pleased right now at all."

The woman then goes on to state that if she were to enjoy a beer in her yard, no one would know what she was doing since the smell of beer doesn't carry like the smell of cannabis does. Well maybe if the two substances being compared were the same, rather than one being a liquid and one being an inhalant, the comparison would be a little more fair. So, as a rebuttal to this woman's poorly thought out argument, I would like to bring up cigarettes again. I personally do not smoke cigarettes. I used to and when a case of deadly bronchitis infected my lungs, I quit. Fast. With doctors telling me I was close to death, I really needed to eliminate the toxic tobacco from my life... If I wanted to keep it that is. Since then, I haven't smoked cigarettes and when I do pass by someone at the mall entrance or when I go in to a bar, I am offended by the smell and sight of people smoking because I know what they can do to people. And anyone that tells you cigarette smoke smells good is a straight up liar.

If people can smoke cigarettes in their backyards, the smoke can carry and permeate other yards. But cigarettes are completely legal and I'm sure that this woman wouldn't have a bit to say if her neighbors were chain smoking Marlborough's on their porch. But seeing as how non-cigarette smokers aren't calling the cops and whining on social media about the smell of cigarettes that covers most heavily trafficked areas in society (bus stops, tattoo shops, grocery stores, bars, hotels, backyards, on the street, near schools, gas stations, etc), it seems unfair to complain about weed. If her rights are being violated by a little bit of weed smoke, then my rights are being violated every time someone smokes a cigarette where I can smell it.

This small outburst of hate towards cannabis users in the privacy of their own homes is not an assault on this woman's rights or anyone else's for that matter. These tokers in Washington (and Colorado and all the states where the plant is allowed) are doing what the law tells them to do and they're still catching heat for it. People need to accept the fact that cannabis is here and also, to leave tokers alone when they're doing virtually nothing wrong.